Get out
by labrinthine
Summary: Nobody Ever escaped CHROME completely, and when a very dangerous gang rises again Finn has to find the one man who destroyed them in the first place... Finn's POV. Warnings: adult themes, violence, language.
1. Chapter 1

Finn has never known anyone whose gotten out of CHROME. No ones ever truly been free, even if they think they are. CHROME keeps tabs on its former employees in case they are needed once again, and they always are. Men and Women of all ages have been recruited, some young and some old with jobs ranging from assassin to undercover agent to desk jockey. Even Finn, who had been recruited at the tender age of 15, knew he could never be free. He had grown used to the constant looming presence of CHROME by now, and barely even flinched when he caught a spy camera or a bug in his phone.

The only important thing about CHROME was that they didn't keep secrets from high ranking officers, and Finn was about as high as you could get without being a part of the council.

No files were withheld from him and no information was hidden. Finn knew about a young girl who tried to get out by purposefully trapping her leg beneath a wall. They amputated it and she went home... only to be brought back in to test out experimental prosthetics and armor. He read about a cubicle worker who retired early and had to be killed for trying to sell some of CHROMEs secrets. He knew about everything.

And then he came across a file he had never read.

Deep in the pits of CHROMEs main HQ was a storage room filled with every paper copy of missions, and Finn would often come down and pick up a file to read in his spare time. He would use his laptop, but nothing could beat the musty smell of paper on a rainy afternoon. On this particular day, he had gone down to clear his head after an assassin had made an attempt at his life. He never enjoyed meeting assassins. They were always so... different. No two assassins were the same. Some loved their jobs while others were forced to do it, some had families some had been paid to_ kill_ their families... there was no in between. Even CHROMEs assassins were creepy and depressing to be around, but they were deadly and definitely a force to be reckoned with.

the man that had attacked Finn... well, he couldn't really say it was an attempted assassination. He was loud and clumsy. Nothing to truly be worried about. Finn had woken up the moment the man had stepped foot in the apartment and had him knocked unconscious before he could take the 5th step.

But the threat of death isn't what had really worried him, that happened to much to care about now. It was the mans wrist watch. it was an antique, and etched into the glass was a picture of a Strawberry cut in half. He had recognized the emblem immediately, and only now was he given a chance to confirm his suspicions. Sorting through the 'S' section of the extensive library he picked a file seemingly at random and took a seat and a long wooden table.

TWANEY STRAWS was printed across the top, and Finn knew all to well the story in its pages. Beneath the letters was a printed picture of a strawberry cut in half. Finn stomach twisted.

Kayla Tawney was the daughter of a man named Joseph Tyler and a (late) Mary Tawney. She took her Mother name because she hated her father so, and moved away as quickly as she could. There she started a Strawberry farm. Quickly the Tawney name became commonplace at any household for jams and fruits and such. Kayla would soon be swept into a very bad crowd, where she married a king pin of the local Mafia. They both then united their forces to create one of the most powerful drug cartels in the entire world. They shipped out millions of strawberries, and hidden by false bottoms and bribes were pound after pound of the most lavish drugs you were to ever find.

Their empire grew wider and wider each passing day, they controlled everything, and would murder anyone who dared to stand in their way. Including one of their founders. Kayla Tawney hired an assassin to murder her husband in the most gruesome way possible, and her request was carried through with surprising passion. There was no really reason for her to kill her husband except for the money, but she already had enough of that. It appeared that she had just grown tired with his company. She took full control and her kingdom flourished.

It wasn't until almost 9 years ago that she was finally assassinated. Finn had been 18 at the time, and had been shocked at her death. Kayla had ruled her empire for a solid_ 22 years,_ and to most people she had seemed invincible. She had been on a jog when a bullet had shot clean through her forehead. She died instantly. Her most trusted advisers were next. Poisoned, stabbed, smothered, shot... anyway you can imagine. The oddest thing of all is that no one knows who was sent to kill her. CHROME hadn't been training any new recruits and no other organization cared nor had the power enough to stop her. She died old, widowed, and alone.

Her empire fell apart with no one capable enough to lead it, and soon the Tawney 'Straws', named after her most popular export, were no more.

Except, now they were making a rise again, if the inscription on the mans watch was anything to go by. Finn sighs, and goes to put the file away when something catches his eye. A file, shoved under the shelf. The very tip of a manila folder peeks and out and blends in with the floor. He never would have seen it if not for his thoughtful staring at the ground. He slides it carefully from the bookshelf. Its old and dirty, but it's spine is still strong. Not many people have seen this file, but it appears to have been viewed rather recently, if the dust layer said so.

The scrubs away a bit of the grime and reads the title.

THE ASSASSINATION OF KAYLA TAWNEY.

He flips the file open and dozens of other papers spill out. Newspaper clippings related to the murder are paper clipped together, red pen circling important bits like what kind of bullet was left and the trajectory it would have had to be taking to make a wound like that. underneath that were papers full of data concerning a specific person, but the name was omitted in each paper. records of his weapons training, charts about his growth in accuracy, and even his report cards from school were all filed here.

and beneath those were tons and tons of papers, written by actual scientist concerning the mans mental health and physical health. They're experimenting the effects of turning a child into an assassin. The results are all positive, and they have no qualms putting him into the field, but his existence was on the down low. The name of said child has been marked or blurred out, and not a single picture was to be found.

And then they assigned him Kayla Tawney.

Hundreds of assassins had attempted to kill Kayla Tawney during her 22 year reign. None of the proved successful, and the assassins themselves were caught, tortured, and killed. It made Finn feel a little sick. They knew that this child would be subjected to some of the most horrible torture in existence if he was caught, but the still sent him in? He was only... Finn shuffled some papers around to look at his age... 13...A 13 year old child was sent by CHROME to try and assassinate one of the most powerful people in the world? Finn was afraid to check the other pages. He worried about what had happened to the child...

Tentatively he flipped the page.

His heart skipped a beat.

This kid... he single-handedly brought down the entire Tawney empire. All before he turned 14. Finn had never met this kid, but he was sure that he never wanted to. A child assassin as an adult? They would be complete and total freaks. Unable to interact with regular society... Social outcasts.


	2. Chapter 2

Lightning McQueen watched with barely contained amusement as Mater attempted to knock out aluminum cans with a slingshot. He had gotten the idea from a movie somewhere, and had been determined to become a slingshot master. Lightning was sure Mater would become caught up by something equally distracting soon. Lighting was amazed at how suddenly Mater could move on to the next obsession. Lightning was actually a very focused person, but lately his friend was having a pretty re;axing effect on him.

"Hey, Lightnin'?"Mater as he let loose another rock, "You wanna give it a shot?"

Lightning was going to refuse, but knowing Mater he would somehow get his to do it anyway. So with only a little bit of reluctance, he comes out from his hiding place behind his car (one can never be to safe around Mater and flying projectiles) and approaches his friend.

Mater hands him the crudely made slingshot and steps back. He's hovering a bit, but Lightning doesn't mind. Pulling back the cord a little, he lazily aims at one of the cans. To his surprise, everyone of the original cans are still there. Mater wasn't very good with a slingshot it seemed. He lets the rock go and it swishes through the air and knocks into a can. the rock scrapes its side and makes the can spin a little, but it ultimately stays upright. Mater cheers and Lightning grins at him, surprised that he had hit the target.

Mater reaches for the slingshot again, "I'm gonna try a few more times!" He says, excitedly.

"Mater?" Lightning comments,glancing at his watch as he hands over the slingshot, "Isn't it about the time Holley told you they would be here?" Lightning asks.

Mater's back straightens in shock, his eyes widen a little and the slingshot slips out from his grasp. "Oh no I forgot!" He yelps and shoots towards his truck, "sorry Lightnin', But I gotta go!" he shouts while jumping into his truck and pulling out onto the road. Lightning smiled good naturedly at his friends antics and goes to get the slingshot up from the ground. He brushed the wooden tool off and stares at it for a moment... then at the cans.

A few moments later all the cans are on the ground and Lightning is heading back towards town.

* * *

"Wait, so are you saying some one tried to assassinate you?" Sheriff asks. Almost all of the Radiator Springs gang is gathered around the trio, listening intently to their new story. It wasn't everyday you could hear stories from a spy, and they took advantage of that. It was one of the few sources of entertainment. The whole town wasn't that big on Tv's, Lizzie had her radio, and Mater had his made up stories... But that was about it.

Lightning was chewing on his straw absentmindedly, only half-listening to Finn talk.

"Yes. He wasn't a very good assassin, and I managed to incapacitate him easily." Finn explains and Lightning sips at his drink idly. "The most surprising part was that he was part of a gang. The Tawney Straws actually-" Lightning drops his drink. It doesn't spill, but it does clatter loudly on the table and draw all the attention to him.

He's still got the straw sticking out of his mouth. "I thought they had disbanded?" He finally chokes out.

Finn is a little alarmed. "You know who they are?"

Lightning shifts uncomfortably. "Not exactly. My Aunt was actually under their empire when it was still at large." He explains, "She had a ton of horror stories about them. Like how they feed you to live within their boundaries and how they weren't ever put in jail because she had a monopoly on all the law enforcement and judicial jobs. There were a couple of terrifying instances when they tried to set fire to her house when she didn't pay, or when they ambushed her when she tried to leave her house." He's frowning at his cup, "They put her in the hospital a couple of times, and they wouldn't let anyone leave."

"I'm sorry about that happening to her." Finn says gently, "And to answer your question, yes. They had disbanded. For a little while. But it seems someone had chosen to resurrect her empire again. The assassin had a strawberry cut in half etched into his watch. That was Kaylas sign, so either someone is trying to bring back the Straws of they're stealing it." Finn exhales hard, "But my guess is that the assassin that destroyed her empire missed someone, and that someone has deemed it safe enough to begin to rebuild, and why they sent an assassin for me... I don't really know." He admits, "I wasn't even a part of the Tawney Investigation, but I am at a high enough rank to know about it. All the details of the Tawney files are open to me, so I am a logical target."

"So, wait, she was assassinated?" Mater asks, eyes wide.

"Yes." Finn says, "I'm not allowed to say what I know about the assassin, and to be honest... I don't know much."

"Can't they just bring her assassin back?" Sally asks, "If he took out the leader once, can't they do it again?"

"Not exactly," Holley begins to explain, "An assassin that good... they would need to have a lot of training and experience, and her death was nine years ago. An assassin that started training when they were 20 wouldn't be a master until they were around 40, 45. Plus nine years amounts up to around 54. He would be too old now..."

"But what if it wasn't an adult?" Lightning asks quietly.

"Like a kid?" Siddeley asks, one eyebrow cocked.

Lightning shrugged a went back to picking at the peeling table top. Finn stares at him for a moment or two while everyone else begins to throw in their two-cents about what the assassin could be like. Lightning had guessed the assassin was a kid. No one else had even begun to entertain the thought of it. Finn assumes it was a lucky guess.

Something in his knows it was a little too lucky.


End file.
